Parabola

As I've said before, I hate the recent/ridiculously persistent trend of hi/low skirts and dresses. But, as you probably have guessed, I'm not against an asymmetrical hem that has a longer length in the back, per se. It just has to be done right. Like the mydearthing F/W 10 wool panel skirt, and this, the hier apparel Parabola bamboo jersey skirt. This is one of the coolest skirts I've seen actually, and I think I shall get it once I'm settled at our new mailing address. We'll say it's in celebration of my first (successful!) in-person conference presentation. 

We need to talk about your TPS reports.

I want an office job. And not necessarily for the money. Just so I have a good excuse to buy these new gorgeous hier apparel pieces. Though I suppose I need a job to make money to buy the hier apparel pieces. Hmm.

The Scent of the Sea

The dreaded day of the removal of my favorite scented neighbourhood feature has arrived. This pile of old lumber (and metal accoutrement) had, until today, been sitting by the train tracks a block outside my front door for perhaps a month now. And for whatever reason, be it its place of origin or some feature of slowly rotting wood, every day since its unexplained arrival, it gave off the most lovely and intoxicating smell. This resulted in me taking in huge gulps of air whenever I walked past or caught its scent downwind, as I practically live for the opportunity of being even momentarily transported back to White Rock or Montauk. But now the train has started running, and so the city gods have deemed it time to take away this aromatic safety hazard. Sigh, times infinity. If I weren't sitting here pining after my lost...pine, I would've put on my best wool, pleated, and voluminous garments to just go stand in the spot where the wood once was, hoping to soak in what's left of the landlocked sea air (while also covering up against the mosquitos, who are likely also in mourning for losing their best breeding grounds). 

This outfit would've consisted of a wool jacket (this formal silk-lined avant garde tux by NY-based designer Michael Brambila would've been very appropriate for the sad occasion), a silk top (this one featuring a gill detail by hier apparel would've been best with the maximized surface area), a voluminous skirt (with my ArtLab skirt definitely being the best candidate, for obvious reasons), and some wool leggings (with my mydearthing Wool Circle Seam Pants being the obvious choice - I didn't want to wash these for a few days after returning from NY last time, as I wanted the smell of Brooklyn to linger a wee bit longer). But, alas, it is now raining, and so, at best, I would just smell of wet clothing. Again, sigh.

So long wood, may you rest in peace.

It's not easy being green...

Just one more week of this living out of a garbage bag business, and hopefully I can return to a slightly more normal life. The kind of life which involves a couch and outfits that are at least a tad fashionable. I think that my friend, Tyler W, might've subconsciously named his newest tune after me and my unfortunate not-yet-St. Patrick's Day-outfit yesterday, which was composed of way too many shades of green. Sigh.

Kelly Green by Tyler W

Speaking of green, I have found the perfect pair of army green pants, no less than nine years after growing out of my beloved Kat Stratford-inspired pair. Found on eBay, these are from Alexander McQueen's S/S 2005 menswear collection, as seen directly on the runway (photo via Style.com). I could only be happier if I managed to pull a non-green shirt out of a garbage bag to wear with them...

And speaking of non-green, I love love love this new jersey cardigan by hier apparel. The parabola-inspired shape and draping is beautiful. I even like the mauve colour. But I have to wonder, could Laura make it in green?

I'm covered in bees, Part II

I've noticed the recent (and exciting!) trend of coated fabrics as an alternative to leather, and I really hope that more designers jump on this bandwagon (remember that glorious glazed cotton piece by Mr. Pugh?). Canadian designer Sonja den Elzen's Thieves' current collection, for example, has some lovely organic cotton pieces that are treated with beeswax (though I must say I'm a bigger fan of the men's pieces than the women's, this time around). The fabric supposedly both wears and is to be treated like leather. Most of these waxed pieces thus cannot be machine washed, but can be spot cleaned by rubbing more wax on them. While the prices are also comparable to that of leather pieces, I think it's definitely worth investing in a great piece that is so environmentally conscious.

A second example of coated fabric was found last night, when I rediscovered the work of Carrie Hayes at Ukamaku, a wonderful new online shop that features Canadian designers. While I'd more readily go for one of the printed silk dresses from her S/S 10 collection that was inspired by Icelandic geology, this jacket, made of polyeurethane coated linen (in the most perfect shade of green) is rather adorable (and a great deal at $80 CDN, from $295).

However, while I'd prefer to buy a coated clothing item, the time has come for me to buy a new bag. For the other day, I had to stand at my apartment's front door for too many minutes, digging in my once beloved handmade cotton bag (which was last year's Christmas present) for my keys. The thin inner lining simply couldn't handle more than 11 months of me shoving my sharp keys and sharp cornered books into it. Sure, the outer layer will hold up for a bit longer, but I simply can't be standing outside, degloved in sub-zero weather, fishing for keys which I won't have the agility to use be the time my frozen fingers have found them. Sigh. All is not lost though, as moop has also discovered coated fabrics! I've had their highly functional and aesthetically pleasing Letter Bag in my favorites for quite some time, but now that they have it (as well as some of their other styles) available in a waterproof waxed canvas, I think I must cave. And, as in honour of Cyber Monday, with the code 'GRAYFRIDAY', you/I get 10% off your moop order. Yay!

Oh, by the way, here are some more Cyber Monday codes/deals you may want to know about. Yes, I know that Cyber Monday is almost over (or long over) for some of you, but I had a truly busy and life changing day. You see, I've finally found out that I have a legitimate knee problem (and have since being a pre-teen) that can be relatively easily corrected, and I'm on my way to becoming a bona fide grad student. Yippee!

- hier apparel: Today and tomorrow, save 20% with code '20off', AND get a free $25 gift card with any order over $100, or a $50 gift card with any order over $200 if you mention the November Promotion in the Note to Shop when ordering. That means that the gorgeous new wool wrap is essentially $103 instead of $160!
- complexgeometries: Today only, 20% off everything with code 'monday'.
- Glamorous Amorous: Ending tomorrow, 15% off your order with code 'NOV15'. Meaning that the Nichole de Carle piece I still have my eye on is only a few dollars more than my weekly acupuncture/beekeeping session. Sigh.

(And yes, I realize this post seems rather disjointed. Such is the result of writing half before life-changing appointments, and then the other half after said life-changing appointments. My apologies.)

White Wisp

 

It's snowing that kind of snow that you know is the real beginning of winter. The kind of snow that makes me worry about the couple of Canadian geese I saw frantically flying southwest this morning. So begins the four months of being grateful for a cozy apartment on the really cold days, and going crazy from being in a tiny apartment on the really cold weeks. Soon I'll be looking forlornly at my favorite ballet flats and (not begrudgingly) wearing some old friends. For now, I suppose I'll just enjoy this very comfy spot on the couch, underneath my warm crocheted blanket from my grandma, and my overheating laptop. Can someone get me a chai?

(Photos of a most perfect wintery wool wrap from hier apparel, also available in charcoal, black, chocolate brown, and forest green. Though it goes against my very nature, I'm extremely tempted to get the white, not completely uninfluenced by Spock's wardrobe from the one or two movies I may have watched last night...)

The moon and the nightspirit

Miss Laura, you've outdone yourself. The new Moon Pearl dress and Shale tank are perfect. I'm usually not into fitted dresses, but this dress looks like it would calm any fears I might have if I had it on. And a racerback tank has never looked so good.

Frequent Flyer

Tonight brings our week of fantastic events (complete with hefty ticket prices) to an end, quite nicely concluded with the pretty much annual stop from the utterly intense Henry Rollins. I think this will be the 3rd or 4th time I've seen him, whilst my man has seen him a couple more times than that. As our local newspaper SEE said, getting to regularly see 'Hank' on his neverending spoken word tour is like seeing that 'angry, cool uncle you can't wait to visit.' I always leave the 'show' with my head full of funny, heartbreaking, and inspiring stories. And the urgent need to travel.

Anywho, on a non-related and very non-punk rock note, the trio of fabulous outings has made me realize that I don't have a good outing bag ('good' of course meaning I can fit my wallet, a bottle of water, and a book in). Which of these hier apparel clutches shall I pick to remedy this? Yes, both of these contain leather in their original design, but the lovely Laura has offered to make a vegan option if I/you so desire. The one on the right looks plenty big for a small tome, but I do love the strap and elastic closure on the left one...Any thoughts?

Etsy updates

I'm supposed to be doing some yoga and then carouse around, but there are a lot of great Etsy updates this morning:

1) I just discovered peace4you.net, and needed to share. This lovely man creates messenger bags from upcycled military bags, military tents, and leather jackets. So yes, they do contain leather, but I think I can get behind making sure the leather is used to its fullest extent if it's simply being recycled.

2) These are actually from a couple days ago, but I thought I'd include them here. The double t-shirt dress has been revamped by Take Off Your Clothes, complete with some softer t-shirts and a drawstring around the neck for more convertible-ness. I'm also loving this optical illusion type top with the longer draped front.

3) Audrey of Black Market Baby has just posted her Spring 2010 'Mysterium' collection, which has some lovely sheer and drapey pieces (with some great photos as well!).

4) A few more free association neckpieces have been posted in the Quillinan shop. Each can be worn hanging lower like a pendant, or as a neck ruff/choker. This one is my favorite.

5) And there are some gorgeous new wool and jersey creations in the hier apparel shop. Hmm, methinks I need to wear a hier apparel piece today.

As promised, Dress Up Time.

My man is at work and I have the day off, so I thought I'd finally post some photos starring my wonderful new ArtLab pieces, plus some old(er) favorites. Changing my outfit more than once causes me to work up a frightful sweat, so you'll have to be content with my dress form standing in as the model. You can see my shadow in a few of the pictures though, so don't complain (please). You'll probably get the gist of it from the picture descriptions, but all but 2 of the pieces are handmade pieces bought directly from the designer, with all but 2 of the handmade pieces purchased on Etsy.

First up: the lovely ArtLab Space Odyssey dress, styled with various harnesses/accessories. From left to right: ArtLab Space Odyssey harness; ArtLab Couture Bib Noir; ArtLab Clinical White Harness No. 1; Norwegian Wood Elastic Harness; ArtLab Charlie Chaplin Couture Bib.

All the rest will feature the versatile ArtLab Military Skirt No. 1, as well as a basic white American Apparel ribbed tank. As pictured on the dress form, the outfits look mostly spring/summery. However, I would be wearing these over leggings, pants, jeans, or other skirts, and with armwarmers, mittens, and more/non-white underlayers (ie. tank tops, t-shirts, and long-sleeve shirts, especially my trusty treehouse 28 basics). My dress form only has one leg and no arms, so you'll have to use your imagination to fill these details in.

Basic outfit with one accessory. From left to right: Quillinan The Forgotten with Zip Neckpiece; Bonzie Le Coquette Ruffled Scarf; hier apparel Boldt Canvas Carapace; drapey vest by Covet. You can also kinda see my extra-high black monochrome Chucks in the 2nd photo.

Adding one more layer (except for the 1st photo - tank top missing). From left to right: ArtLab Charlie Chaplin Couture Bib; hier apparel Golden Mean Peasant Shift; hier apparel Vock Canvas Armour; Liza Rietz half circle tunic in black.

Adding an accessory. The first two photos feature the Liza Rietz waffle tucked tunic in herringbone, with the ArtLab Couture Bib Noir on the left, and the Attila Design Cown Neck Scarf on the right. The last photo features the ArtLab Andromache's Deconstruction Blanc dress with the ArtLab Couture Bib Noir.

This group features the ArtLab Bustle of Lysistrata, plus an accessory. From left to right: Las Lopez Wood Nymph Point Lace Shawl/Scarf; Attila Design Cowl Neck Scarf; hier apparel Boldt Canvas Carapace.

These are full outfits (minus the leggings/pants/mittens) that I would wear. The black top underneath is the complexgeometries two face dress, and the hoody is The Hoody (a.k.a. the Alexandra Groover 5-hooded hoody). The first two photos feature the ArtLab Clinical White Harness No. 1 over top the cg dress, with the Las Lopez Wood Nymph Point Lace Shawl/Scarf in the second photo. The last photo has the ArtLab Bustle of Lysistata instead of the Clinical White Harness No. 1.

And here are the two looks you would see me most often in, as I tend to be a creature of habit when it comes to throwing on an outfit quick. The first look (and probably the worst picture I snapped all morning) is the ArtLab Andromache's Deconstruction Noir, with The Hoody. The second look (and probably the best picture I snapped all morning) is the complexgeometries two face dress, ArtLab Clinical White Harness No. 1, Las Lopez Cobwebs Shawl/scarf, and my Yokoo East Hampton tote in pumpkin spice and charcoal grey.

Now I have to put all those clothes back in my closet/on their pile. Sigh.